Warp knitting method, machine and needle therefor



Nov. 24, 1959 me. AMIDON WRAP KNITTING METHOD, MACHINE AND NEEDLETHEREFOR Filed July 22, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR I R C AMIDONATTORNEY R. c.' AMIDON WRAP KNITTING METHOD, MACHINE AND NEEDLE THEREFORFiled July 22, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 8

INVENTOR R.C. AM-IDON ATTORNEY Nov. 24, 1959 R. c. AMlDON 2,913,888

WRAP KNITTING METHOD, MACHINE AND NEEDLE THEREFOR Filed July 22, 1957 sSheets-Sheet 3 FIG. 10

INVENTOR R ."c AMIDON in? 1 ATTORNEY Nov. 24, 1959 R. c. AMIDON WRAPKNITTING METHOD, MACHINE AND NEEDLE THEREFOR Filed July 22, 1957 6Sheets-Sheet 4 FIG.12A

FIG. 13

INVENTOR R C AMIDON ATTORNEY Nov; 24, 1959 R. c. AMIDON WRAP KNITTINGMETHOD, MACHINE AND NEEDLE THEREFOR 6 Sheets- Sheet 5 Filed July 22,1957 FIG. 14

FIG-16 INVENTOR R C AMIDON I all ATTORNEY Nov. 24, 1959 R. c. AMlDON 72,913,888

WRAP KNITTING METHOD, MACHINE AND NEEDLE THEREFOR I Filed July 22, 1957s Sheets-Sheet e FIG. 15

. INVENTOR R C AMIDON ATTORNEY United States Patent 2,913,888 WARPKNITTING METHOD, MACHINE AND NEEDLE THEREFOR Roy C. Amidon, Reading, Pa.Application July 22, 1957, Serial No. 673,513

14 Claims. (Cl. 66-86) The present invention relates to apparatus andmethod for warp knitting in which the warp yarn which is supplied ismoved from a position in front of the knitting needle and is then passedbetween the knitting needles to a position in back of the knittingneedle and is then returned to its original position in front of theknitting needle by being passed again between the knitting needles onthe opposite side of the knitting needle which is coacting with the warpyarn supply.

The knitting needles are conveniently set in a line by attachmentthereof to a needle bar and the warp yarns are supplied through yarnguides with the warp yarn be ing under tension.

In conventional warp knitting the yarn which is wrapped within the hookof the needles is made to pass through the loop of a previously formedknitted stitch by means of a trick or knockover bar, the knitted fabricbeing drawn away from the needles in a direction opposite to theposition of the yarn guides. The knitted fabric and the stitches thatare in the process of formation are held in contact with the knockoverbar by the tension applied by the knitted fabric which is leaving theneedles.

The casting Off or knockover of the knitted stitches takes place at thetop of the trick or knockover bar. The needles operate on one side ofthe bar and. the knitted fabric is held in position and drawn away fromthe needles, under tension, on the opposite Side of the bar.

The tension upon the knitted fabric which is produced is frequently notuniform. This is primarily true in flat or straight knitting where thetension of the fabric is more pronounced in the center of the machine.When a knockover bar is employed in the casting off of the stitches, thereduced tension between the needles and the fabric takeup roll at thesides of the knitted fabric permits the loops of the previously formedstitches to be drawn upwardly along the needle shank. Further, when theyarn has been conveyed by means of the yarn guides to a point in back ofthe needles and then starts forward again in the process of laying theyarn around the needles, thetension on the warp yarn which is suppliedis reduced and the yarn relaxes between the yarn guides and the needles.This reduction in tension enables the yarn loops to be lifted to a stillhigher position upon the needle shank. This lifting of the yarn loops isa cause of distortion in the stitch formation. Further, the relaxationof the warp yarns supplied can result in an excessive impact between theWarp yarn and the knitting needles.

2,913,888 Patented Nov. 24, 1959 strained upward movement of the loopsalong the needle until contact is made between the yarn within theneedle hooks and the loops that are around the needle. This resultsinfan excessive impact between the yarn within the needle hooks and theloops before the loops have been drawn to their stitching position uponthe sinker blades.

Further, in conventional warp knitting, the yarn is carried by a yarnguide which'is not capable of accurately di recting the yarn in its pathto the needles, from the yarn guide. As a result, it has been necessaryfor the yarn guides to move in a path which is below theprojectedposition of the needles with-the yarn guides moving between theprojected needles. Asa consequence, themachine speeds has been limitedby the danger that the yarn guides would strike the needles at excessivespeeds.

An object of the presen; invention is to provide warp knitting machinescapable of effective and reliable operation at faster machine speeds.

A further object of the invention is to reduce the tendency of the yarnto miss or to contact the point of the hook of the needle. i i

Still another object of the invention is to perform warp knitting with aminimum of yarn tension and to maintain a uniform tension upon the yarnas it is laid upon the shank of the needle imposition to engage'the hookthereof. I

A further object of the invention is the provision of warp knittingapparatus in which the yarn is moved around the needles and placedwithin a hook thereof with greater accuracy than has heretofore beenpossible.

Another object of the invention is the provision of warp knittingapparatus in which the yarn guides are specially formed to moreaccurately guide the yarn and' are moved through a path above theprojected needles so that the yarn guides cannot strike the needles.

Still another object of the invention is the production of warp knittingfabrics having fewer imperfectionstherein. V

Still another object of the invention is the provision of warp knittingapparatus capable of reliable operation 3 employing a shorter needlestroke.

with a longitudinally extending groove. A book plate In the downwardmotion of the needles which is ac companied by the retraction of thesinker nibs in timed relation, there is a termination of contact betweenthe cross threads that connect the laterally juxtaposed stitch chainsand the sinker nibs before the needles can move downward to a pointwhere the yarn within the needle hooks can clear the sinker nibs. Byreason of the above,- and because of the upward tension pull upon theyarn within the needle hooks and the horizontal tension pull of theknitted fabric upon the needles, there is an unre- In accordance withthe invention, the forward extremity of the knitting needle adjacent thehook thereof is arched away from the point of the needle and the'rearadge of the main body or shank of the needle is formed having a hookwhich faces the hook of the knitting needle is slidably mounted Withinthe longitudinal groove of the knitting needle. The knitting needle andits associated hook plate are operated in conjunction with a sinkerhaving a nib section for holding the yarn loop downwardly at apredetermined level so that the yarn loop will not follow the knittingneedle in its upward projection. The sinker is also formed with a lowerknockover section which functions to hold the yarn loop upwardly tomaintain the yarn loop at predetermined level while the knitting needleis retracted to draw the fresh yarn loop through the previously knittedyarn loop laidover the slide plate which guides the yarn into the archedportion of the needle as the yarn guides move from the rear of theneedles to the front of the needles.

Therear of the needles is the grooved edge thereof.

Still further in accordance with the invention, the

3 warp yarns are tensioned by means which function as a part of theguide bar rocker shaft. More particularly, the improved tension devicein accordance with the invention participates withthe yarn guides in ato-andfro movement. As the yarn guides are moved to their extremeposition in back of the needles, the motion of the yarn tension deviceis in a downward direction toward the needles. As the yarn guides aremoved forwardly to their extreme forward position in front of theneedles, the tension device is moved in an upward direction away fromthe needles. As a result, a more uniform tension is applied to the yarn.

Also in accordance with the invention, the yarn guides are formed with ayarn guiding aperture the lower edge of which is horizontal and the yarnguide is formed so that the yarn supplied is maintained in engagementwith the said horizontal lower edge and the yarn guides are movedthrough a path above the projected position of the needles so that thedanger of having the guides strike the needles at high machine speeds iseliminated.

Fig. 1 illustrates the assemblage of operating elements which isemployed in warp knitting in accordance with the invention. A

Fig. 2 is a side elevation partly in section, showing the hook needle,hook plate combination of the invention.

Fig. 3 is a section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation showing a slide plate and the block uponwhich the slide plate is mounted.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the slide plate and supporting block structureshown in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a partial front elevation showing a yarn guide in accordancewith the invention.

Fig. 7 is a side view of the yarn guide shown in Fig. 6.

Figs. 813 are partial side views illustrating in step by step manner thesequence of operations employed in the warp knitting method of theinvention.

Fig. 9A is a front view showing the relationship of parts at thatinstant of the warp knitting operation shown in Fig. 9.

Figs. 10A, 11A, and 12A are front views similar to that shown in Fig. 9Awith reference to Figs. 10, 11 and 12, respectively.

Fig. 14 is a cross-section showing the yarn guide assembly and thetensioning means employed to tension the yarn which is supplied.

Fig. 15 is a diagrammatic side elevation showing an illustrativepreferred structure which enables the operation of Figs. 8-13 to beperformed.

Fig. 16 is a detailed view illustrating the mechanism for moving theyarn guides from side to side.

The numeral 10 designates a knitting needle having a book 11 which ismounted in a needle bar 12 for .reciprocation along the length of theneedle by .the needle bar reciprocating mechanism 13 which is moved backand forth as indicated by the double-ended arrow 14.

Cooperatively disposed adjacent the needle 10 is a hook plate 15 whichis mounted upon a hook plate bar 16 for reciprocation in the directionof the length of the needle by means of the hook plate bar reciprocatingrlrgechanism 17, as indicated by the double-ended arrow Cooperativelydisposed alongside the needle 10 and the hook plate 15 is a sinker 19which is positioned to substantially slidingly contact the sides of theneedle 10 and which is mounted upon the sinker bar 20 for reciprocationin a direction transverseto the length of the needle and in the plane ofthe width of the needle by means of the sinker bar reciprocatingmechanism 21, as indicated by the double-ended arrow 22.

Disposed above the sinkers 19 and substantially parallel with respectthereto is a slide plate 23 which is positioned in the plane of theneedle10. The slide plate 23 is mounted upon the slide plate bar 40 byconnecting means 24 for reciprocation in a direction transverse to 4 thelength of the needle and in the plane of the width of the needle bymeans of the slide plate bar reciprocating mechanism 25, as indicated bythe double-ended arrow 26.

Disposed above the needles 10 and the slide plates 23 are pairs of yarnguides 27, and 28 which are mounted upon the guide bars 29 and 30. Theseguide bars are swung back and forth between a position in front of theneedles 10 to a position in back of the needles 10. This swingingmovement is effected by the guide bar swinging mechanisms 31 and 32,which are pivoted as is generally indicated by the double-ended arrow33. The guide bars 29 and 30 are also shifted from side to side by themechanism shown in Fig. 16 so that they will traverse the path shown inFig. 9A-12A.

Figure 2 illustrates the structure and relative disposition of theneedle 10 and the hook plate 15. As can be seen the hook 11 of theneedle 10 is disposed at the upper extremity of the needle at the end ofan arched portion 34 so that the book 11 is set back from the rear edgeof the main body portion or shank of the needle 35. The rear edge 36 ofthe shank 35 is grooved longitudinally as indicated by the numeral 37.The groove 37 extends to a depth such that a line projected upwardlyalong the bottom of the groove toward the hook 11 will just clear thehook 11.

The upper end of the hook plate 15 is formed with a hook 38 which facesthe book 11 of the needle 10. The front of the hook plate is mounted inthe groove 37 of the shank 35 for sliding movement therein. As can beseen, the hook 38 will just miss the hook 11 as the hook plate 15 andthe needle 10 are reciprocated as indicated by the arrows 14 and 18. Thehook 38 can enter the groove 37 to engage a yarn loop positioned on theshank 35 of the needle 10. The hook 38 may be grooved as shown at 38'.

Figure 3 is a side View of Fig. 2 and it can be seen that in the form ofthe invention illustrated, the needle 10 is thicker than the hook plate15 along the shank of the needle so that the hook plate 15 can beslidably disposed within the groove 37. As a result, the hook plate 15is guided by the needle 10 and perfect alinement is assured. The upperend portion of the needle 10, e.g., the arched portion 34, and the hook11 are conveniently of the same thickness as the hook plate.

The yarn slide plates of the invention are more clearly shown in Figs. 4and 5. The yarn slide plates 23 are formed of a thin plate of steel orother material of similar characteristics. One end of the slide platesis free, and the opposite ends are cast in blocks forming the slideplate bar 40, these blocks being removably mounted in line upon thereciprocating mechanism 25 (see Fig, 1). An aperture 41 is formed in theblocks to enable securement of the blocks to the reciprocating mechanism25.

The yarn slide plates may be of any thickness that will support the yarnwithout flexing. Normally, the yarn slide plates are cast in the samegauge as the needles and are moved in a to-and-fro motion with asubstantial dwell at both extremities of movement.

Referring more particularly to Fig. 4, the upper surface of the plate23, as it extends away from the block is smooth and a forwardlyextending finger portion 42 is situated at the upper portion of theplate. The surface 43 below the finger portion 42 and in back of thesame is shaped to conform to the hook section of the needle. The lowerend of the forward extremity of the slide plate tapers rearwardly asindicated at 44.

The yarn guides 27 and 28 are more clearly shown in Figs. 6 and 7 wherethe yarn guides are identical and only the yarn guide 27 is shown. Ascan be seen, the guide 27 is formed of wire which is bent to provide astem portion 45, an opening 46 and a tail section 47. As previouslyindicated, the guides 27 and 28 are mounted upon the yarn guide bars 29and 30. i "The opening 46 is triangularly shaped andincludes ahorizontal bar 48 and inclined portions 49 and 50 which are joined attheir lower ends by the said horizontal bar 48. The inclined portions 49and 50 provide a camming action to the yarn as the yarn is moved by themovement of the guides 27 and 28. The inclined portion 49 is alsoinclined with respect to the stem 45 as can be seen in Fig. 6. The yarnis inclined upon an angle greater than the angle of the wire guide sothat the yarn will remain in contact with the bar 48. This is animportant feature and it assures precise lateral positioning of the yarnat all times. The opening 46 is closed by the tail portion 47 whichincludes an inclined portion 51 directed up wardly toward the stem 45and a terminal portion 52 which is directed upwardly and away from thestem 45 to facilitate threading of the yarn in the opening 46.

In threading the guides 27 and 28, the yarn is passed between the yarnguides and is placed against the stem 45 above the tail portion 47, andonthe side of the stem 45 facing the tail portion 47. The yarn is thenpassed into the opening 46 by sliding the yarn toward the bar 48 withsutficient force to cause the yarn to pass bythe bend 53 (see Fig. 7). i

The structure of the sinkers 19 will become apparent from thedescription of the operation of the warp knitting procedure of theinvention which is sequentially depicted in Figs. 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and13 and which will now be discussed.

Referring to Fig. 8, the yarn guides 27 and 28 are positioned in frontof the needle which is shown in its fully retracted position. The yarnsY and Y are caught within the hook 11 to form the loop L and thepreviously knitted yarn loop L has just been cast off. Fig. 8 thereforeshows the cast off position. The hook plate 15 is rising as indicated bythe arrow 60, this hook plate 15 while moving upwardly having justeffected the casting off of the yarn loop L as will be more fullydescribed hereinafter. The hook 38 of the hook plate 15 is well abovethe hook 11 of the needle 10. The yarn slide plate 23 is positionedabove the needle 10 and the hook plate 15 and is being retracted asindicated by the arrow 61.. The sinker 19 is being projected asindicated by the arrow 62.

Referring more particularly to the sinker 19, this sinker includes amain body portion 63 at the forward extremity of which is formed a lowernib 64 which serves to prevent the yarn loop L from moving to a positionlower than a predetermined level and an upper short nib 65 which servesto hold the yarn loop L down when the sinker 19 is sufiicientlyprojected to enable the upper nib 65 to reach the loop L. The action ofthe nibs 64 and 65 will be more fully described later when the portionsof the knitting cycle in which these nibs participate is described.

Referring to Fig. 9, the hook plate 15 has now been fully projected sothat the hook 38 is above the lower surface of the upper nib 65, theyarn slide plate 23 is fully retracted and the yarn guides 27 and 28 aremoving rearwardly as indicated by the arrow 66 toward the rear of theneedle 10 but are in front of the needle. It will be observed that theneedle 10 has been fully projected. In this fully projected position ofthe needle 10, the hook 38 of the hook plate 15 has just entered thegroove37 and the shank 35 of the needle extends across the openingbetween the nibs 64 and 65 of the sinker 19 which is also fullyprojected. The yarn loop L is positioned in the space between the nibs64 and 65 as a result of the knitted fabric having been caught and helddown by the lower surface of the upper nib 65 as the needle 10 wasprojected. It will be especially observed that yarn guides 27 and 28pass above the projected needles 10 and the two cannot strikeirrespective of machine speed. This is shown with particular clarity inFig. 9A.

Referring to Fig. 10, the sinker 19 has remained in its fully projectedposition, the needle 10 has remained in its fully projected position andthe hook plate 15 is being retracted as indicated by the arrow 67. Itwill be ob 6. served that the hook 38 of the hook plate 15 has moveddownwardly within the groove 37 and is about to enter the loop L, thepurpose of which will become apparent later. At the same time, the yarnguides 27 and 28 have moved rearwardly to their extreme rear position inback of the needle 10 and these guides have been shifted from side toside as can be seen by comparing Figs. 9A and 10A. The slide plate 23 isbeing projected as indicated by the arrow 68 and the slide plate 23, theyarn guides 27 and 28 and the needle 10 all cooperate to wrap the yarn Yaround the needle. The wrapping action will be more fully describedhereinafter. It will be observed at this point that the yarns Y and Yhave moved past the sides of the needle 10 and partially across theneedle 10 where they have been caught by the advancing slide plate 23(see Fig. 10A). Additionally, the needle 10 is about to be retracted ashort distance as indicated by the arrow 69 for a purpose which will beevident in Fig. 11.

Referring to Fig. 11, the short retraction of the needle 10 has movedthe yarn loop L to the lower portion of the space between the nibs 64and 65 into engagement with the upper surface of the nib 64. The purposeof this is to hold the yarn loop L to facilitate entry and retention ofthe yarn loop by the hook 38 of the hook plate 15. As can be seen inFig. 11, the book 38 has entered the loop L. The slide plate 23 is nowfully projected and the relative positions of the projected slide plate23 and the hook '11 of the needle 10 can be clearly seen.

In Fig. 10, the yarn Y has been laid in the arched portion 34 of theneedle 10 and in Fig. 11, the finger 42 is engaging the yarn Y to guidethe yarn into the hook 11 along the arched portion 34. At the same time,the yarn guide 28 has moved the yarn Y into engagement with the taperedportion 44 of the slide plate 23 which acts as a guide to lay the yarn Yinto the arched portion 34 of the needle 10.

In Fig. 12, the yarn guides 27 and 28 are moving forwardly and the yarnY has been guided into the rearwardly arched portion 34 of the needle 10to be safely trapped within the hook 11. The needle 10 is about to beretracted and the sinker 19 is also about to be retracted.

The front views showing Figs. 9A, 10A, 11A and 12A when taken inconjunction with Figs. 8-13 will clearly show the path of the, yarnguides 27 and 28. This path is always above the needle 10 and the yarnsY and Y are always in contact with the horizontal bar 48.

In Fig. 13, the needle 10 is almost fully retracted as indicated by thearrows 70 and the sinker 19 is fully retracted so that the upper nib 65is no longer in contact with the knitted fabric whereby the yarn loop Lis free to rise except for the presence of the hook 38 on the hook plate15. The hook plate 15' is about to be projected as indicated by thearrow 71. As will be evident, projection of the hook plate 15 willremove the book 38 from the loop L and this loop, as a result of theretraction of the needle 10 and the presence of the lower nib 64, isabove the hook 11 on the needle 10. Thus, projection of the hook 38 willfree the loop L and cause the same to be cast oif over the top of thehook 11. The yarn guides 27 and 28 are now fully in their extremeforward position and the new loop on the needle 10 is fully formed inthe hook 11. The slide plate 23 is about to be retracted.

It will be observed that the difference between Figs. 13 and 8 is thefact that in Fig. 8, the hook plate 15 has been projected to cast offthe yarn loop (now identified as L) and the sinker 19 has been projectedto be in position for the start of the next knitting cycle. A furtherdifference is the side to side shift of the yarn guides 27 and 28 whichare'shifted in the time period from Fig. 13 to Fig. 8 to once againresume the lateral position shown in Fig. 9A.

It will be seen from the foregoing description of the operationprocedure of the warp knitting apparatus of the invention that theinvention permits the use of a- 7 short needle stroke. This stroke isshorter than is permissible with knitting machines which employ yarnguides which pass between the needles or in machines which employ latchor spring board needles in place of the hook plate 15.

It will also be seen that when the yarn guides are moved to lay the yarnbetween and in front of the needle, that there is no release of yarntension upon the yarn so that the yarn is securely and accurately placedbetween the needles and the yarn slide plates at high machine speeds.After the yarn has been positioned between the slide plates, the yarnguides are moved to position the yarn upon the top surface section ofthe plate next in line and the yarn is made to contact the taperedsection of the hook needle in the same position in each knitting cycleof the machine as the yarn guides are moved to their rear position.

The yarn slide plates function from a rocker shaft position to theirto-and-fro movement, and stay in line with the needles to permit theyarn to be drawn around the needle much more accurately than machinesthat have to depend upon the position of the guide bar exclusively toposition the yarn as it is drawn in back of and around the needles.

It will also be seen that by the use of the needle hook plate tointercept and hold the previously formed loops, that the yarn loop onthe shank of the needle is positively engaged and effectively releasedat the proper time. Moreover, the point of the needle hooks makes asliding contact with the rounded section of the hook upon the hookplate, as compared to the possible end to end contacts between the hookand tongue elements of other types of tongue and groove needles.

It will also be noted that by the use of the previously describedneedle, that the hook section of the needle hook plate holds the yarnloops in position over the sinker so that the sinker nibs may bewithdrawn from between the needles much more slowly and smoothly than ispossible in machines that use other types of needles in a wrap knittingprocess.

It will also be evident that by the use of tension which is applied moreuniformly to the yarn that greater machine speeds may be attained.

A feature of the invention is the provision of more uniform tension tothe yarn between the warp beam and the needles than is possible in thestationary or conventional tension. An advantage of this is that whenthe machine is stopped and started in a knitting process, the stitchesthat are in the process of being formed at the stopping point, willremain in the same proportion as to length as the stitches that areformed in a continuous knitting operation. One feature of the improvedyarn tensioning means is a to-and-fro movement relative to the movementof the yarn guides. More particularly, as the yarn guides are moved tothe extremity of their motion in back of the needles, the yarntensioning means is moved in a downward direction toward the needles. Asthe yarn guides are moved forward to their position in front of theneedles, the yarn tensioning means is moved in an upward direction awayfrom the needle, imparting a lifting effect upon the yarn by reason ofthe upward motion of the yarn tensioning means and the frictionalcontact between the flexing section of the yarn tensioning means and theyarn.

The yarn tensioning means is shown in Fig. 14 and is constructed of aspringy plate 72 of steel or other material of uniform thickness toprovide a flexing action. The plate 72 extends longitudinally along thelength of the yarn guide bar. One lateral portion of the springy plate72 is free and unsupported, while the opposite lateral portion issupported between two plates of metal 73 and 74 which are arranged, oneupon each side of the steel plate 72, by means of suitable rivets orbolts which join the three pieces securely together. The combinedstructure is rigidly supported along its length by arm member 75.

The arm member 75 is rigidly mounted upon the guide bar rocker shaft'76.As a result, and as can be seen in Fig. 14, the springy plate 72 moveswith the guide 27. The yarn Y frictionally engages the plate 72 in itspassage to the yarn guide 27. In the same manner, the plate 72 isengaged by yarn passing to the guide 28.

Any suitable means may be employed to provide the necessary timedmovement which is specifically shown in Figs. 8-13. Suitable means forthis purpose are illustratively presented in Figs. 15 and 16.

Referring particularly to Fig. 15, the numeral desig-' nates a main camwheel having a plurality of cam tracks thereon, the followers 81, 82, 83and 84 hearing against the cam tracks on the cam wheel 80. Themovement'of the followers 81, 82, 83 and 84 regulates the time movementof the needle bar 12, the hook plate bar 16, the sinker bar 20, theslide plate bar 40, and the yarn guide bars 31 and 32, which are allshown in their assembled relation in Fig. 1 with arrows indicating themovement which is to be effected. The description which follows of Fig.15 will be better understood it it is taken in conjunction with theassembled relationship and movements shown in Fig. 1.

Referring first to the needle 10, movement thereof in the directionindicated by the double-ended arrow 14 is achieved by mounting theneedle bar reciprocating mechanism 13 on the end of an arm 85 which issecured to a sleeve 86 mounted for rotation on a rocker shaft 87. Thesleeve 86 is secured to an arm 88 which is connected to the follower 84.As the follower 84 is moved toward and away from the cam wheel 80, asindicated by the double-ended arrow 89, the arm 85 is oscillated asindicated by the double-ended arrow 90 and the needle bar reciprocatingmechanism 13 is moved back and forth as indicated by the double-endedarrow 41.

Referring next to the hook plate 15, the necessary movement of the hookplate bar reciprocating mechanism 17 in the direction indicated by thedouble-ended arrow 18 is achieved in the following manner. The bookplate bar reciprocating mechanism 17 is secured on the end of an arm 91which is slidably disposed for longitudinal movement in an aperture inthe needle bar reciprocating mechanism 13, as diagrammatically shown inFig. 15. In this manner the needle 10 and the hook plate 15 areindependently reciprocated while they are maintained in alinement. Thelower end of the bar 91 terminates in a pin 92, to which is pivotallysecured a bracket 93. The lower end of the bracket 93 is secured to apin 94 projecting from an arm 95 which is mounted for rotation on ashaft 96. The arm 95 is provided with a lower projection portion 97 uponwhich is mounted a pin 98, to which is pivoted a connecting rod 99. Theconnecting rod 99 is pivotally mounted on a lever member 100 asindicated at 101, the lever member 100 being fixed to a rocker shaft 102for swinging movement as the shaft rotationally oscillates. Also fixedto the rocker shaft 102 is an arm 103 which is connected with the slideplate reciprocating mechanism 25, the lower end of the arm 103 beingconstituted by a sleeve 104 which is keyed to the rocker shaft 102. Anarm 105 is fixed to the sleeve 104, at one end, and to the follower 83,at the other end, so that movement of the follower 83 toward and awayfrom the cam wheel 30 as indicated by the double-ended arrow 106 willcause rotational oscillation of the rocker shaft 102, as indicated bythe double-ended arrow 107. As a result of this movement, the arm 100oscillates as indicated by the double-ended arrow .108 and thismovement, through the connecting rod 99, causes the arm 95 to oscillateas indicated by the double-ended arrow 109, and this oscillation istransmitted through the bracket 93 to the slidable arm 91 to effectreciprocation of the hook plate 15 as indicated by the double-endedarrow 18. At the same time, the movement of the arm 105 oscillates thearm 103 as indicated by the double-ended arrow 110 to cfiectrc ;'9ciprocation of the slide plate reciprocating mechanism 25 as indicatedby the double-ended arrow 26.

The arm 111- is freely pivoted to the rocker shaft 102. Thus, the arm111 employs the shaft 102 as a center of pivotalmovement so that thesinker 19 will move in a plane parallel with the plane of movement ofthe slide plate 23. However, the arm 111 is not oscillated by the rockershaft 102 since the movement of the sinker is not timed with themovement of the slide plate. Instead, the arm 111 is separately actuatedin the following manner. An arm 112 having a sleeve 113 at its lower endis keyed to the rocker shaft 96 and this rocker shaft 96 isro-tationally oscillated by the arm 114 which is connected at one end tothe shaft 96 and at the other end to the follower 82. As the follower 82is moved toward and away from the cam wheel 80, the arm 114 is causedto,oscillate as indicated by the double-ended arrow 115 and this resultsin an oscillation of the arm 112 as indicated by the double-ended arow116. This movement of the arm 112 is transmitted to the arm 111 by thepivotally mounted connecting rod 117 so that there results a movement'ofthe sinker 19 as indicated by the double-ended arrow 22.

The yarn guide reciprocating mechanisms 31 and 32 are moved together. Ascan be seen, these reciprocating mechanisms 31 and 32 are mounted forswinging movement about a rocker shaft 76. As previously indicated, theyarn guides 27 and 28 are caused to move through a path as indicated bythe double-ended arrow 33. Additionally, at each end of the swingingmovement, the yarn guides are shifted from side to side (see Figs. 9A,10A, 11A and 12A). The movement with which we are here concerned isthe'movement indicated by the double'ended arrow 33, the side to sidemovement being discussed later.

Connected to rocker shaft 76 is a lever arm 119 at the lower end ofwhich is pivotally mounted a connecting rod 120 and the opposite end ofthe connecting rod 120 is pivoted to an arm 121, the lower end of whichis formed with a sleeve 122 which is keyed to the rocker shaft 87, therocker shaft 87 is rotationally oscillated by the arm 123 which isconnected at one end to the rocker shaft 87 and at the other end to thefollower 81. As the follower 81 moves towardand away from the cam wheel80, .the'arm 123 is oscillated as indicated by the doubleended arrow 124and the arm 121 is oscillated as indicated by the double-ended arrow124' to cause the yarnguide reciprocating mechanisms 31 and 32 to carrythe yarn guides 27 and 28through the path indicated by the doubleendedarrow 33.

" It will be appreciated that the showing presented in Fig. 15 isdiagrammatic, there being no effort made to show precise details ofconstruction since these are in no way. material to the invention. It isimportant, however, to note that the construction which has beenpresented represents only minor structural changes from conventionalwarp knitting reciprocating structure and these present structures canbe modified as indicated in Fig. 15'

Referring to Fig. 16, a cam Wheel 125 is shown which is driven by thedrive shaft 126 through the gears 127 and 128. The yarn guidereciprocating mechanisms 31 and 32 each terminate at one end in aprojecting stern 129 ending in a follower 130, which is biased against atrack in the cam wheel 125 by means of the spring 131. Since each of thereciprocating bars 31 and 32 are handled in the same way, and since, inFig. 16 these bars arepne behind the other, only one of the side tosideshiftingstructures is shown. Eachiof the followersQ130 bears againsta'separate cam track in the cam wheel 125. Since this structure formoving the yarn guides from "10 side to side is conventional, it willnot be further described. The invention is defined in the claims whichfollow.

I claim:

1. In combination, a hook needle comprising a main body portion and anarched portion with a hook disposed at the upper end of said archedportion, the said hook being set back from the rear edge of said mainbody portion, said rear edge of said main body portion being groovedalong the length of said main body portion with said groove extending toa depth such that a line projected upwardly along the bottom of saidgroove will just clear the front of said hook, a hook plate having ahook facing said needle at the upper extremity thereof, said hook platebeing cooperatively disposed with respect to said hook needle so thatthe hook of the hook plate can remove a yarn loop from the main bodyportion of said hook needle and thereafter release said yarn loop tocast the same over the upper end of the hook of said hook needle bybeing slidingly mounted within the said groove of the hook needle, thehook of said hook plate being dimensioned tobe received within thegroove of said hook needle, and a pair of yarn guides mounted forswinging movement back and forth between a position in front of saidhook needle to a position behind said hook needle through a path abovethe projected position of said hook needle.

2. In a warp knitting machine, a hook needle and a slide plate, saidhook needle comprising a main body portion and an arched portion, with ahook disposed at the upper end of said arched portion, the said hookbeing set back from the rear edge of said main body portion, said slideplate being positioned in the plane of said hook needle in a directiontransverse thereto, said slide plate having a forwardly projectingfinger at the upper end of the forward extremity thereof, the forwardsurface of said slide plate immediately beneath said finger conformingwith the shape of the hook of said hook needle, means to reciprocatesaid slide plate in a direction transverse to the length of said needle.

3. In a warp knitting machine, a hook needle, a hook plate, a slideplate anda sinker, said hook needle comprising a main body portion andan arched portion with a hook disposed at the upper end of said archedportion, said hook plate having a hook at the upper end thereof facingsaid needle, said needle having a longitudinal groove in the main bodyportion thereof facing said hook plate with said groove beingdimensioned to receive the hook of said hook plate, said slide platebeing positioned in the plane of said hook needle in a directiontransverse thereto, said slide plate having a forwardly projectingfinger at the upper end of the forward extremity thereof, the forwardsurface of said slide plate immediately-beneath said finger conformingwith the shape of the hook of said hook needle, said sinker having amain body portion, a lower nib at the forward end of said main bodyportion and a short upper nib at the forward end of said' main bodyportion, means to reciprocate said needle along the length thereof,means to reciprocate said hook plate in a direction parallel with thelength of said needle, means to reciprocate said slide plate in adirection transverse to the length of said needle and means toreciprocate said sinker in a plane transverse to the length of saidneedle, said sinker being positioned alongside said needle and said hookplate and transverse thereto.

- 4. In a warp knitting machine, a hook needle, a hook plate, asinkerand yarn guides, said yarn guidesbeing mounted upon guide barswhich are pivotally secured to a rocker shaft, said hook needlecomprising a main body portion and an arched portion with a hookdisposed at the upper end of said arched portion, said hook plate havinga hook at the upper end thereof facing said needle, said needle having alongitudinal groove in the main body portion thereof facing said hookplate with saidgroove being dimensioned to receive the book of said,

hook plate, said hook plate being slidably mounted in the groove of saidneedle, said sinker having a main body portion, a lower nib at theforward end of said main body portion and a short upper nib at theforward end of said main body portion, said yarn guides being mountedabove said needle for swinging movement back and forth from the front ofsaid needle to the rear of said needle and back again to the front ofsaid needle, means to reciprocate said needle along the length thereof,means to reciprocate said hook plate in a direction parallel with thelength of said needle, means to reciprocate said sinker in a planetransverse to the length of said needle, said sinker being positionedalongside said needle and said hook plate and transverse thereto, meansto swing said yarn guides to wrap the yarn carried by said yarn guidesaround said needles, and a flexible tension plate carried by the rockershaft to tension the yarn as said yarn passes from a beam to said yarnguides, said tension plate being swingable with said yarn guides toplace the yarn under uniform tension during the various stages of thewarp knitting operation.

5. In a warp knitting machine, a hook needle, a hook plate, a sinker,yarn guides and a slide plate, said hook,

needle comprising a main body portion and an arched portion with a hookdisposed at the upper end of said arched portion, said hook plate havinga hook at the upper end thereof facing said needle, said needle having alongitudinal groove in the main body portion thereof facing said hookplate with said groove being dimensioned to receive the hook of saidhook plate, said sinker having a main body portion, a lower nib at theforward end of said main body portion and a short upper nib at theforward end of said main body portion, said yarn guides being mountedabove said needle for swinging movement back and forth from the front ofsaid needle to the rear of said needle and back again to the front ofsaid needle, said slide plate havinga forwardly projecting finger at theupper end of the forward extremity thereof, the forward surface of saidslide plate immediately beneath said finger conforming with the shape ofthe hook of said hook needle, means to reciprocate said needle along thelength thereof, means to reciprocate said hook plate in a directionparallel with the length of said needle, means to reciprocate saidsinker in a plane transverse to the length of said needle, said sinkerbeing positioned alongside said needle and said hook plate andtransverse thereto, means to swing said yarn guides towrap the yarncarried by said yarn guides around said needles and means to reciprocatesaid slide plate in a direction transverse to the length of said needle.

.6. In a warp knitting machine, a plurality of hook needles mounted in aline, a plurality of hook plates mounted in a line facing said hookneedles and a plurality of pairs of yarn guides, said hook needlescomprising a main body portion, a hook disposed at the upper end of saidneedle and an arched portion between said hook and said main bodyportion, means to reciprocate said hook needles to project and retractthe same in unison, said hook plates being mounted for reciproation inthe plane of said hook needles, said yarn guides defining a yarn guidingaperture the lower end of which is constituted by a horizontal bar, saidyarn guides being mounted for swinging movement back and forth between aposition in front of said hook needles to a position be hind said hookneedles through a path above the projected position of said hook needlesand said yarn guides being shaped to cause the yarn supplied through thesame to be maintained in contact with said horizontal bar as said yarnguides are moved.

7. The combination recited in claim 6 in which said yarn guides comprisea wire bent to define a triangle with a horizontal lower bar and an openupper end.

'8. The combination recited in claim 7 in which said wire is bent toprovide a stem portion, a triangularly shaped portion including a pairof inclined portions 12 joined at their lower ends by a horizontal bar,one of said inclined portions being inclined with respect to said stemportion at an angle greater than the angle of said yarn guide so thatthe yarn remains in contact with said horizontal bar as said yarn guideis moved.

9. The combination recited in claim 7 in which tensioning bars arecarried with said yarn guides to maintain uniform tension upon the yarnsupplied as the yarn guides are moved.

10. The combination recited in claim 8 in which the other of said pairof inclined portions terminates in a tail portion directed upwardlytoward the stem portion, said tail portion terminating in a upwardlydirected terminal portion directed upwardly away from said stem portion.

11. A method of warp knitting using a hook needle, a hook plate, asinker, and yarn guides, said hook needle comprising a main body portionand an arched portion with a hook disposed at the upper end of saidarched portion, said hook plate having a hook at the upper end thereoffacing said needle, said needle having a longitudinal groove in the mainbody portion thereof facing said hook plate with said groove beingdimensioned to receive the book of said hook plate, said hook platebeing slidably mounted in the groove of said hook needle said sinkerhaving a lower nib and a short upper nib mounted at the forward endthereof and said yarn guides being mounted above said needle forswinging movement back and forth from the front of said needle to therear of said needle and back again to the front of said said needlecomprising projecting said needle, moving said yarn guides from thefront of said needle through a path over said needle to the rear of saidneedle, holding the old yarn loop downwardly on the main body portion ofsaid needle with the upper nib of said sinker, retracting said hookplate with respect to said needle to cause the hook of said hook plateto move downwardly within said groove into a position within the oldyarn loop on the main body portion of said needle, retracting saidsinker to remove the upper nib thereof from the path of said needle andsimultaneously returning said yarn guides to their initial position infront of said yarn guides to their initial position in front of saidneedle to wrap the yarn around said needle, then retracting said needlewhile supporting the old yarn loop on the lower nib of said sinker sothat the old yarn loop is retained by hook of said hook plate and thenprojecting said hook plate to release said old yarn loop above saidneedle.

12. A method of warp knitting as recited in claim 11 in which a slideplate having a forwardly projecting finger at the upper end of theforward extremity thereof is em ployed and is projected to a positiondirectly over the projected needle while the yarn guides are moved to aposition to the rear of the needle to engage the yarn supplied by theyarn guides.

13. A method of warp knitting as recited in claim 12 in which said slideplate is formed with the forward surface thereof immediately beneathsaid finger conforming with the shape of the hook of said hook needleand with the lower end of the forward extremity of said slide plate istapered to the rear of said slide plate so that the yarn supplied isguided into the arch of said needle and hence into the hook thereof.

14. A method of warp knitting as recited in claim 11 in which the yarnsupplied is tensioned by means which are moved with said yarn guides sothat the tension applied to the yarn which is supplied is uniform as theyarn guides move back and forth.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES. PATENTS

